Athletic supporter with a sacroiliac protective pad



Sept. 16, l947.' v s. J. VlTALE 2,427,428 I ATHLETIC SUPPORTER WITH .ASACROILIAC PROTECTIVE PAD Filed July 19, 1944 2 Shis-Sheet 1 Pf 44 k9Inuentors. J. VITALE 2,427,428

ATHLETIC SUPPORTER WITH A SACROILIAC PROTECTIVE PAD Sept. 16, W47.

, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 19 Patented Sept. 16, 1947 ATHLETICSUPPORTER WITH A SACK/O- ILIAC PROTECTIVE PAD Sebastian J. Vitale,Fulton, Mo.

Application July 19, 1944, Serial No. 545,581

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to a combined athletic supporter and protectivedevice.

A primary object of this invention is the provision of an athleticsupporter having incorporated therein a protective pad or the like forprotecting the sacroiliac joint of the wearer from injury.

A further object is the provision of such a supporter affording maximumprotection to the wearer, without discomfort. As conducive to a clearerunderstanding of this invention, it may here be pointed out that thosewho wear athletic supporters are customarily engaged in heavy manualwork or strenuous athletic sports. Un der such conditions falls andsimilar body contacts frequently occur. Among the more common injuryresulting from such falls or bodily contacts is the bruising orfracturing of the sacroiliac joint, located at the base of the spine.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a protectivepad to protect the sacroiliac joint from such injury, comprising anintegral part of an athletic supporter, whereby the garment provides atthe same time support and protection for the wearer.

Other objects will in part be obvious and in part be pointed out as thedescription of the invention proceeds.

In the accompanying drawings wherein there is shown a preferredembodiment of this inventive concept i Figure 1 is a front elevationalview of an athletic supporter embodying this invention.

Figure 2 is a rear elevational view of the device shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line 33 of Figure2.

Figure 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line 44 of Figure2 as viewed in the direction of the arrows, and

Figure 5 is a detail view showing the reverse side of the protective padas shown in Figure 2.

Like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the several viewsof the drawings- Having reference now to the drawings, a waistband l0,adapted to be worn in the conventional manner, has secured thereto thecustomary supporting pouch H, from the lower portion of which buttockstraps I! extend outwardly, to be positioned about the body of thewearer and have their ends secured as at l3 to waist portion In at apoint adjacent, but spaced from th'e opposite edges of pouch ll. Band [0and straps l2 may be of elastic material, or if desired may be serted ata suitable point in band Ill.

waistband Ill is a sacroiliac protecting pad generally indicated at 15.Pad I5 is so dimensioned and shaped as to extend from a point adjacentthe waist of a wearer downwardly between the buttocks to a pointintermediate the crotch and tapered at its lower extremity so as toprovide a comfortable fit and obviate interference with the movement ofor discomfort to the wearer. To the lower end of pad l5 are securedcrotch straps l6 adapted to pass under the crotch of the wearer andsecured at their opposite ends to suitable portions of buttock strapsl2. Pad I5 is preferably comprised of a pocket-like structure includingan outer wall I! and an inner wall [8 stitched together at their edgesas at 19 (see Figure 4), each of walls I! and I8 being provided with avertical row of stitching, at an intermediate point, securing togetherthe opposite halves of these walls, to facilitate replacement ofmaterial therebetween (to be described hereinafter) as necessary. It ispointed out that the opposite halves of rear wall [8 adapted to bepositioned adjacent the body of the wearer are secured together in endabutting relationship to preclude the formation of ridge which mightcause chafing or other discomfort to the user thereof. Positionedbetween the inner and outer walls I! and I8, and adjacent inner wall I 8is a layer 25 of relatively soft packing and padding material, betweenwhich layer and outer wall I! is positioned a second layer 26 offlexible, but relatively stiff protective packing.

From the foregoing the utility of the device should be readilyunderstandable. When positioned in the customary manner on the person ofwearer pad l5 covers and protects not only the sacroiliac joint but theentire adjacent region in such manner that any impact or blow in suchregion is deadened by padding layer 26 and the impact thereof againstthe body of the wearer cushioned by soft padding layer 25.

Thus, it will be seen that there is herein provided a combined athleticsupporter and sacroiliac protective pad which afiords a maximumprotection to one of the bod regions most frequently afiected byinjuries, and that the device herein described accomplishes all theobjects of this invention and many others including advantages of greatpractical utility and commercial importance.

As many embodiments may be made of this inventive concept and as manymodifications may 3 be made in the embodiment hereinbefore shown anddescribed, it is to be understood that all matter herein is to beinterpreted merely as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

In a device of the character described, at waistband, a supporting pouchsecured to said band, buttock straps secured to the lower, end of saidpouch and to the band near the pouch and adapted to encircle the legs ofthe wearer, a protective pad comprised of an inner wall and an outerwall, a layer of relatively soft padding therebetween adjacent saidinner wall, and a layer of relatively stiff padding between saidfirst-mentioned layer and said outer Wall, said pad being securedt csaidWaistband at a point diametrically opposite said pouch, and extensiblecrotch straps secured to the lower end of said pad and to said buttockstraps near the pouch whereby said pad will be held in protectiveposition over the sacroiliac region of the wearer.

SEBASTIAN J. VITALE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 35,683 Howard June 24, 1862908,533 Zuckriegel Jan. 5, 1909 999,415 Street Aug. 1, 1911 1,141,569McClure June 1, 1915 1,250,407 Woods Dec. 18, 1917 1,206,525 Force Nov.28, 1916 1,989,686 Deutsch Feb. 5, 1935 2,219,475 Flaherty Oct. 29, 19401,612,121 Hittenberger Dec. 28, 1926 1,020,588 West Mar. 19, 191.2

